NEXT DAY: BRIARWOOD SCHOOL ★

Isabella arrived but didn’t see her friends waiting for her at her locker as they normally do. Her eyes searched for them until she saw them gathered in front of Valeria’s locker, and her eyes darkened.

“Guys!” She angrily walked towards them. “Why are you standing here?” she demanded.

“Chappell told us what you did yesterday. Trying to steal Ace when you like Elijah. That’s two-timing, and it’s not cool. We don’t do that to friends here,” Abby said.

“I wasn’t trying to steal Ace,” Isabella sighed.

“Then explain why I saw both of you together. You don’t even care about Cyber boys. You just have a crush on Elijah,” Chappell said.

“I like Elijah and I still do. What happened with Ace yesterday was nothing. I don’t even know what he was doing there,” Isabella tried explaining herself.

“What was he doing there, and why was he holding your face?” Gloria asked.

“I just said I don’t know. Why are you guys being so ridiculous?” Isabella was already frustrated.

“What is going on at my locker?” Valeria suddenly appeared, holding another Chanel bag. She looked at Isabella and narrowed her eyes.

“What are you doing here with your minions?” she asked, crossing her arms under her chest.

“We were about to leave,” Isabella scoffed and began to leave but stopped when she noticed no one was following her.

“I said, we were about to leave,” Isabella repeated herself, using her eyes to motion her friends to follow her.

“Sorry, but we are on Valeria’s side now,” Gloria said while Chappell and Abby nodded.

“You can’t be serious,” Isabella’s eyes widened.

“We are. Valeria, what do you think about adding us to your list of friends?” Chappell asked.

“Well,” Valeria smirked, looking at Isabella. “If you want to, who am I to say no?” she said.

Isabella looked like her whole world was crumbling, but she had spent years trying to maintain her composure in front of everyone, including her friends.

“Well, I hope you won’t regret this day,” she said and turned away, holding back the thousand pains she was feeling at that moment.

Her phone blinked; it was a text from Elijah.

Wanna go out later tonight? – E

She smiled a little. At least if she lost everything, she still had Elijah.

★★★★★★★

RUIZ MANSION ★

Camila was lying on her bed when she heard someone knock on her door but refuse to enter. If it were the maids, they would only knock twice and ask if they were allowed to come in, and it certainly couldn’t be Alejandro as he doesn’t even know the meaning of knock.

She tiredly stood up from her bed and went to get the door. There were about five women, but the one standing at the front looked more confident and was wearing a suit paired with pinstriped trousers.

“Greetings, Mrs. Camila. My name is Natalia Navarro and I’m a professional stylist,” Natalia said, showing Camila her business card.

“Mr. Alejandro Ruiz sent me here. He said the both of you will be going to an event and he said I must make you look breathtaking,” she added, and Camila remembered that the elite event gala Alejandro invited her to was today.

“Come in,” she told them, and they entered, closing the door behind them.

“I’ll quickly have my shower,” she informed them, grabbing her towel and heading to the bathroom. After a few minutes, she was out in her bathrobe and sitting at her vanity table.

The stylists began working on her face. She also showed them the dress she was planning to wear and they helped her with it. They gave her the best hairstyle and makeup that complemented the clothes.

Camila’s phone rang; it was from her mother, and she picked up.

“Camila, how are things?” Sofia asked.

“Things are good, Mom. I’m dressing up and about to go to an event with Alejandro. How are things over there?” Camila replied and asked her question also.

“Everything is fine, but I’m worried about your sister. It seems like school is getting tougher. She has been moody these days and today she has refused to come out for dinner,” Sofia said worriedly.

“It’s just teenage hormones, I guess. I’ll talk to her later today when I’m back to make sure everything is okay,” Camila assured.

“Thank you, dear. I’ll leave you to go now,” Sofia said, and Camila replied by nodding and then waited for her mother to knock on the door.

Someone knocked on her door.

“Young Mrs., Mr. Alejandro asked me to remind you that he is waiting outside,” a maid informed.

“I will be out in a few minutes,” Camila replied and waited for the stylist to finish before she stood up to admire herself.

The red dress hugged her body perfectly, and the back of the dress had a long, designed robe that added to its beauty. Her hair was wavy, oily, and shining. Her lips were bright red, matching the color of the gown, and she paired it with black heels and a black Debbie Wingham bag.

She was satisfied with her look.

“You look gorgeous, ma’am. I should praise you for your natural beauty,” Natalia admired her.

“Thank you,” Camila said appreciatively. She stepped out of her room and began descending the staircase to meet Alejandro. He heard her footsteps and looked up, his body stiffened.

If there was another word other than gorgeous, breathtaking, or segzy, he would use it to describe her. His Camila was so perfect; she had the right curves. Red was definitely her color.

“I’m sorry I took so much time,” she said, coming down to meet him.

Alejandro cleared his throat. He needed to start thinking straight and stop picturing himself ripping off her gown, using a piece of it to cover her mouth, and his belt to tie her hands above her head while he f_cked her with her body pinned against the wall.

“About time. I thought I’d wait the whole night before you came out,” he rolled his eyes and began going out.

Camila narrowed her eyes as she stared at him. No compliment? Did she not look good enough? She wondered but quickly shook it off. She wasn’t trying to impress him or anyone, so it really didn’t matter if she looked great or not.

She followed him to the car. The driver helped them open the door, and he couldn’t resist the urge to compliment Camila.

“You look beautiful, ma’am,” he said.

“Thank you,” Camila smiled. At least a driver appreciated her beauty more than her husband did.

Alejandro’s eyes darkened when he stared at his driver and the poor man froze.

“Is talking to my wife why I hired you as my driver?” he asked harshly.

“I’m sorry, sir,” the driver apologized.

“Cut him some slack. He was just complimenting me,” Camila rolled her eyes.

“Then how about you get married to him and watch him save your family’s company instead,” Alejandro shrugged at her.

Camila resisted the urge to call him an @$$h0le. She just scoffed and looked out the window, tired of thinking about what could always be his problem. If he was going to act so jealous, then he should have complimented her himself, but he did not.

In the space of a few seconds, the car accelerated.

★★★★★★★

CYBER HOUSE ★

The boys were in the living room playing games with their PS5 together when Elijah’s phone dinged.

I’m sorry I can’t make it for dinner tonight, my parents won’t let me come out this late. – I

Ace peeked at the message and turned his attention back to the game.

“You were planning to go out with Isabella tonight? And you’re still here playing games,” he mumbled.

“How disrespectful is it to look through someone’s message?” Jeff scoffed, chewing gum as usual.

Ace only rolled his eyes.

Elijah stopped playing all of a sudden, pausing the whole game.

“Hey man, what’s wrong with you?” the boys complained, but he did not answer. He just stood up and walked to his room.

“We did not force him to go on a date, did we?” Easton mumbled to the boys.

“Our captain’s mood swings can be unpredictable. I’ll check up on him,” Alan stood up from the couch and ran after Elijah.

“Like, bro, if he doesn’t want to go on a date, he should just leave the girl for someone who wants her, right?” Ace scoffed, brushing the hair covering his eyes back behind his ear, exposing another ring on his eyebrow.

“What do you mean someone who wants her? Are you interested in the captain’s girl?” Jeff leaned closer to Ace.

“Hey, don’t put words in my mouth. Good grief,” Ace rolled his eyes.

*****

ELIJAH’S ROOM ★

Alan knocked on the door before he entered. He found Elijah sitting in his chair and playing with a yoyo.

“What’s up, man? You asked Isabella on a date and you weren’t even ready. What if she was already waiting for you?” Alan came to sit beside him.

Elijah looked at Alan but didn’t reply. He continued to play with his yoyo. Alan twitched his lips and took the yoyo from him.

“Hey, can’t you see I want to be left alone?” Elijah sighed.

“Talk to me. What’s going on? Are you planning to give up?” Alan asked.

“It’s just not working out for me,” Elijah said tiredly.

“Then try someone else. I heard there’s a new girl; she’s actually very pretty. She might be able to help you,” Alan shrugged.

“Alan…” Elijah dragged his name, sighing.

“You want to give up now, Elijah? We’ve spent years trying to come up, and look at where you are now. You know how the society is. What if you wake up one day and people find out? What would your parents say? Are you not thinking?” Alan scolded him.

Unknown to them, Ace was eavesdropping behind the door outside.

“What is Elijah hiding from us?” he asked himself, narrowing his eyes in wonder.

★★★★★★★

ELITE BUSINESS GALA ★

The cameras of the paparazzi flashed as businessmen and their wives or dates posed on the red carpet. Different models of cars stopped, and more businessmen showed up.

Alejandro’s car was the next to arrive. The driver got down and immediately helped him open his door. Alejandro stepped out, wearing a charcoal grey suit that matched his trousers.

His driver was about to open the door for Camila, but Alejandro stopped him. He walked to the other side of the car and opened the door for Camila, extending his hand to her.

Camila took his hand and stepped out gracefully. He led her to the carpet where they could take pictures, careful not to step on her gown.

The cameras flashed their aggressive lights towards them, capturing as many pictures as possible.

“Smile and keep your head straight,” he whispered in her ear. Camila almost glared at him for bossing her around on the carpet but maintained her composure and did as he asked.

Camila was surprised by the romantic pose Alejandro struck with her, and as soon as they were done, he walked her into the building where the main event was being held.

The sight was thrilling, filled with different businessmen and women. Some men were chatting with each other, some women were admiring their bags and gowns, while some partners were just keeping each other company.

“Come, I’ll introduce you to a few of my friends,” Alejandro held Camila’s hand and took her to where a few businessmen were gathered. The person she recognized was Fernando.

“If it isn’t Alejandro and his beautiful wife, Camila,” Fernando greeted with his usual playful smile.

“Does your wife get prettier every day, Ruiz?” Fernando asked, checking Camila out. He did not act in a harmful way, but Alejandro was already giving him a warning look.

“Mr. Ruiz, good to see you again,” some other men and even women approached to talk to Alejandro. It was mostly about business and upcoming projects, which Camila found boring. She excused herself to get some punch.

She went to the bar and sat on a stool.

“A glass of punch with ice, please,” she ordered, and the waiter complied.

She began drinking and scrolling through her phone.

“Camila?” Someone called from behind her. She turned her gaze. It was the man who had helped her get home a few days ago—Rafael.

“Or should I say, just Camila?” he asked, flashing her a charming smile.

💍💍 TBC 💍💍